Offshore ain't fun... get the picture?

Well, this is the part of the trip we will like to forget.

C&D Canal

We got away from Baltimore at 9 for a 55 mile trip up the Chesapeake to the C&D Canal. There was an adverse current of about 2 Kts. most of the way.  The weather was cold, overcast and dreary. We bundled up against the chill. The sights along the way include large estates high on the Eastern shore, many with working farms. Picturesque is the word I was looking for.

The Summit North Marina was a welcome sight as we tied up around 5 PM. What should have been a seven hour trip had taken over eight hours due to the currents.

Cape May, New Jersey

The currents were with us as we pulled out early the next morning. Our trip would be 60 miles.

Along the way to the Delaware River we passed a flotilla of 12 Navy training vessels from Annapolis. That was unusual.  Their wakes were small so we did not get pounded 12 times. As we entered the river the tide turned against us at about 1.5 Kts.  I consulted the current data down the river and found that they would favor us later in the afternoon.

Delaware bay was smooth to partly choppy until the last 10 miles to Cape May Canal. For the last hour we were beating into 2 to 4 foot seas. Don Thomson had alerted us to this possibility the previous day.

A squadron of 14 "GoFast boats" (mostly Sea Ray 36 to 44 footers) roared past us leaving the seas behind in turmoil. We moved about a half a mile to their starboard when we saw them charging down on us.

For once, not having a Waterway Guide worked in our favor. We simply asked a passing fishing tour boat for a marina recommendation.  He directed us to Miss Chris Marina, the only $1 a foot slips and  $1.25 per gal diesel at Cape May. We stayed at Miss Chris' floating dock and drove our bikes into town for some minor provisioning. It's a popular tourist spot in the summer and the locals were busy setting out their best "tourist traps" for the weekenders.

Atlantic City

We listened to the weather and the offshore buoy reports and decided to "stick our nose out" as Don would say.  The winds and seas were from the South, waves reported 4 feet. Out we went, at first slightly into the waves as we left the jetties. As we made the turn to the North we passed broadside to the waves for a moment.  The boat heeled over and swayed back violently, several items fell below but only one dish broke.

It took about a half an hour to find a combination of speed and direction that minimized the discomfort.  I tried steering by hand and by Autopilot. The Autopilot, Mr. Dobbs, was better for overall attention to detail. I did better when "Rogue Waves" caught our stern.

It was only a three hour trip to the inlet at Atlantic City, it seemed much longer. It was early afternoon when we got settled at Senator Farley  State Marina. We took the bikes down and rode them to "The Boardwalk at Atlantic City". The mission was to buy an Ice Cream, and an outfit for Marion for the fourth of July.

Along the way we passed all of the streets on the Monopoly game board: Baltic Ave, Mediterranean Ave, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, New York, Park Place... I decided to buy a hotel on Boardwalk from Donald Trump..The price was a bargain at $2,000.

The Marina was pricey at $2 a foot, but the accommodations were first rate. We went to the  Marina Casino and lost a few dollars playing the slots and $5 minimum bet Blackjack. I'm good for an hour in a Casino and make an effort to minimize my losses and still have fun.

Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey

I was feeling lousy at daybreak.. .cough, slight fever, general misery.  I went to the Hotel/Casino Gift Shop and found some Hall's Menthalyptus Cough drops and some Robitussin cough syrup.  Before getting back to the boat I was feeling better, and I decided we would press on up the coast.

The northern end of the New Jersey coast is a skinny peninsula called Sandy Hook. There is a large and well protected marina operated by the city of Atlantic Highlands about four miles away on the mainland. The trip was 88 miles in the Atlantic for all but 6 miles. There is a port at Manasaquon about 55 miles up the coast that we could duck into if needed.

Again getting out to sea was the worst part leaving Atlantic city. Until you get a mile or two out, the waves reflecting off the shore are mixing with the waves from the ocean. Again the waves were on our starboard quarter, mostly 3 to 4 footers. The ride was moderately uncomfortable and the occasional rogue wave required manual steering.  Most of the time the autopilot did the job better than I, (of short attention span.)  We pressed on at about 10 kts; we usually do 8.5 kts. The salon smelled of exhaust and Marion could not tolerate it below.

We called ahead and made reservations and the fuel dock attendants ushered us in at 5:30 PM. The trip was 9.5 hours I don't want to do again.

We went to the closest restaurant, Shore Casino, for dinner and dancing and a bottle of Chardonnay. It was a wonderful place. There were two "bands" that alternated playing to provide continuous music. The music was all classical ballroom dancing stuff from the 40's and 50's. There were six or so couples, ourselves included, that made sure no tune went undanced.  We all applauded the bands and the better dancers who put on a good show. The food was great. I had the Veal Saltimbuco. They know how to live in New Jersey.

We were not expected to meet Don and Ann in Port Washington for another day so we stayed a second day at the Highlands. We met some folk on a new Beneteau who offered to take us sailing . We really looked forward to that but the weather turned poor. By afternoon the rains stopped and we biked into town for a late lunch and a grocery trip.

After five days of travel, it is great to take a day or two off and catch up on all the stuff you can't do underway.

NOTE: I will add pictures later. Film is still in the Camera.